This is a debate I had with my freind, Josh, in highschool. I was messing with him one day and I said "did you do your economics homework?" when he freaked out and said "what? we had homework?" I said "no". Then he was sort of mad, and said "You lied to me!"
I said that I didn't lie to him because I merely asked a question, and a lie, according to the dictionary, is "a statement spoken with intent to decieve." A question, I explained, is not a statement. His argument that my question had an IMPLIED statement, that was in fact "we have economics homework", that was stated to decieve.
I still say I didn't lie.
He still says I did.
Your thoughts? Can a question be a lie?
2006-07-25 07:27:06 · 24 answers · asked by Brianman3 3 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
We're still great freinds 10 years later. He wasn't that mad. It's still just a philisophical debate between us. Seems like opinions are pretty much split here today! This is exciting!
2006-07-25 07:47:06 · update #1
Technically you're right.... but you're really wrong lol.
2006-07-25 07:32:15 · answer #1 · answered by heidielizabeth69 7 · 0⤊ 3⤋
It isn't a question of whether you lied about the question or not. The point your friend was making was - why ask the question in the first place if you KNEW the answer? Get it? So yes, he would think you had the intention to decieve him, if not get him rattled up with a bogus assignment only to find out from you also there wasn't any assignment.
2006-07-25 07:32:12 · answer #2 · answered by Equinox 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You didn't lie. Your question alarmed him, but when he questioned the truth of your implication you confessed the truth.
Had you answered "yes," you would have lied.
If he hadn't asked you the question and you could tell that he was distressed--but you remained silent--you would have been guilty of a lie by omission.
I don't mean to leave your friend in the weeds here. He merely is and has been using the wrong word. You didn't *lie* to him; you *tricked* him. The two of you can agree on that, if you haven't
already.
2006-07-25 09:48:15 · answer #3 · answered by Steve 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes. This is a good illustration of how Karl Rove's famous political "push poll" works. John McCain was leading in the South Carolina primary so voters were asked: "Would you be more likely or less likely to vote for John McCain for president if you knew he had fathered an illegitimate black child?" Doubt was planted in voters' minds and McCain lost to Bush. The McCains had in fact adopted a Bangladeshi girl. I'd call this massive deception.
2006-07-25 08:16:56 · answer #4 · answered by murphy 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A question is no statement, so it cannot be false. As for implication, consider the following question, asked in the same situation: "did you do *all* your economics homework?". In that case, he did, because he completed all given assigments (100% of 0 assigments). But "did you do your economics homework" implies *all* his economics homework, for he either did it or not: "most of it" would still mean "no".
2006-07-25 08:22:41 · answer #5 · answered by sauwelios@yahoo.com 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The question was not a lie - however, the premise under which it was asked was misleading and deceitful. This is not unlike the manner of questioning used in interrogation practices (e.g. in law enforcement). Similar lines of questioning may be disallowed in our court proceedings ("Do you still beat your wife?" is a question that is self-incriminating, whether answered "yes" or "no," based upon a possibly false supposition.)
A lie is one of a series of tools used to deceive. It is not merely a stated mis-truth. Other examples of a "lie" may be optical illusion, sleight of hand, ventriloquism, and even psychological suggestion. Honest.
2006-07-25 08:07:56 · answer #6 · answered by alchemist0750 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Definately! I agree with the first answer. Although you have your debate about the dictionary definition, you ought to know that one's mind is very tricky and the very thought of wanting to decieve someone, whether it be serious or just for the fun of it, is already committing to a lie. :)
2006-07-25 08:28:06 · answer #7 · answered by m 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The operative statement in your question was "I was messing with him one day...." You explicitly stated you set out to deceive him by asking him a leading question for which you didn't expect an answer and that you knew was untrue.
So yes, based upon those elements, you lied.
2006-07-25 07:37:30 · answer #8 · answered by soulrider 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"a statement spoken with intent to deceive"... ok, let's look at the word "statement"
The word "statement" has several forms, one is declarative:
"I told you to clean your room"- a declarative statement
"did you do your economics homework?"- an INTERROGATIVE statement. (interrogative is a form of the word interrogate, which means to ask questions....)
and since you USED AN INTERROGATIVE STATEMENT with the intent to decieve your friend the answer to your question is yes
you have some serious ethical issues...
2006-07-25 07:36:37 · answer #9 · answered by blkrose65 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your question was a lie, with the implied statement that there was homework.
2006-07-25 07:32:42 · answer #10 · answered by MTSU history student 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A question cannot be a lie because as you said it wasn't a statement.
2006-07-25 07:31:36 · answer #11 · answered by Roonal.18™ 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋